Cleaning Elemental Mercury Spills from Commercial Aircraft

The advantages of utilizing Rader Environmental Services, Inc. for cleanup of spilled mercury in aircraft are:

Cleaning up mercury

Timely response

Rapid and thorough evaluation of spill situation

Open communication with a Rader technical specialist throughout the process

Rader’s experience of over 20 years developing response plans for mercury cleanup projects

Implementation of the response plan by Rader in a professional and confidential manner

Rader’s knowledge of effective and innovative techniques for removal of mercury spills while protecting the integrity of high value aircraft and aircraft support assets.

Rader is experienced removing mercury from aircraft framework, stringers and skin without the use of harsh chemicals that can damage the aircraft’s aluminum structure.

Reading nondestructive testing departments and labs x-rays

Working with maintenance repair and overhaul facilities.

From the moment a spill notification is received from an aircraft manager anywhere in the world, Rader Environmental Services, Inc. is ready to respond. Rader understands the importance of quickly assessing the spill situation by asking the appropriate questions early in the process. Using information from the initial request for services, Rader assigns personnel and begins to structure a response plan. Examples of previous responses by Rader are described in the following project experience summaries.

Mercury found under removed sealant

Selected Project Experience

Major Airfreight Service, Wilmington, Ohio: Rader was contracted to cleanup mercury from the cargo holds of two commercial cargo airliners. Due to the extent of the mercury contamination, the manufacturer of the airliner had even recommended scrapping the two aircraft.. Based upon their assessment Rader developed a plan to remove the mercury using specialized non-destructive access tools. Rader completed this work within one week. Post cleanup testing by a team of over 20 certified inspectors using 10x and 20x loops for framework inspection as well as X-ray testing confirmed no mercury indications. Lumex Mercury Vapor Analyzers were used to confirm that ambient mercury levels were within acceptable breathing zone limits.

Major Airfreight Service: Rader was called upon to clean up elemental mercury from the cargo hold of a commercial airliner laying over in Zurich, Switzerland during a routine maintenance check which indicated the presence of elemental mercury on the aircraft’s interior hold surfaces. A Rader crew performed a decontamination of the cargo hold of the aircraft resulting in re-commissioning of the aircraft to regular service.

Major Airline, Republic of South Africa: Rader responded to a call from a major airline based in South Africa as a result of a mercury spill in the cargo hold of a commercial airliner. Rader mobilized to the site and successfully removed the mercury to acceptable levels using specialized access tools. Follow-up x-ray testing by a third party confirmed no mercury indications allowing re-commissioning of the aircraft to regular service.

Mercury on top of frame found under sheet metal

Mercury on stringer

Mercury removal

About Us

In a world where industry is faced with heightened concern for environmental responsibility and increasing regulations regarding hazardous waste management issues, Rader Environmental serves as a problem solving company that strives .....